Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Local Elections topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Supervisor candidates debate Sunnycrest, data centers, housing protections and county services at League forum
Summary
At a Dubuque League of Women Voters forum, candidates Rick Dickinson and Kristen Dietzel outlined differing approaches to Sunnycrest and fairgrounds transitions, supported bargaining with county employees, backed local protections for manufactured-home residents and urged stronger local water-quality and mental‑health responses while debating how the county should respond to data centers and budget pressures.
Carmen Hernandez, president of the Dubuque League of Women Voters and moderator, opened a forum for Dubuque County supervisor candidates where Rick Dickinson and Kristen Dietzel traded views on county services, local regulation and budgeting.
Rick Dickinson, a candidate for Dubuque County supervisor, said Sunnycrest and the fairgrounds have suffered from confusion and a lack of preparation and urged the board to clarify outstanding agreements within a year; he said he favors county-level ordinances to regulate data centers and would pursue statewide rules while proposing that large data-center electricity users pay higher rates rather than receive breaks. "Artificial intelligence is coming. It's here. It's not going away," Dickinson said as he argued for planning and local regulations.
Kristen Dietzel, a candidate for Dubuque County supervisor, said she supports both Sunnycrest and the fair board operating independently of the county when appropriate and argued for a moratorium on data centers until the county has an "airtight policy" protecting residents and the environment. She proposed a local manufactured‑home bill of rights to protect residents of mobile home parks from out‑of‑state private equity owners and said the measure would send a clear message even while broader legislative solutions are needed.
Both candidates said they would bargain in good faith with county employees. Asked about the 2017 changes to chapter 20 limiting public‑sector collective bargaining, Dickinson called the move "a terrible harm" and said he would negotiate with unions; Dietzel said a handbook is not a contract and likewise supported returning to good‑faith bargaining.
On water quality, Dickinson said he supported funding for clean‑water programs and urged stronger partnerships with agriculture to reduce chemicals and PFAS in groundwater and streams. Dietzel highlighted the county's Dubuque County Watersheds program and farmer‑to‑farmer practices, including streambank stabilization and real‑time monitoring, as models to expand.
Both opposed an outright ban on large livestock confinement operations, saying regulation, inspection and enforcement are preferable to a ban. On the Summit carbon‑sequestration pipeline and eminent domain, Dietzel said she is "opposed to eminent domain as a tool for private corporations," and Dickinson criticized the political influence of industry contributors and said eminent domain for pipelines should not be allowed without clear public purpose.
The candidates diverged on airport support and service models: Dickinson said he would not broadly fund the Dubuque Airport absent a narrowly tailored revenue guarantee and emphasized federal policy's role in sustaining rural commercial service; Dietzel said she would not support ongoing county subsidies without a different proposition. On transit, both advocated more flexible, demand‑responsive models rather than rigid fixed routes to better serve shift workers and rural riders.
On behavioral health, Dickinson said the 2025 reorganization of mental‑health regions into seven larger regions managed by a private agency "has not worked" and reduced services; Dietzel said regionalization is failing to provide timely, high‑touch care and urged fixes. Both candidates stressed the need to protect core county services amid state property tax reform that they said is shifting costs and straining budgets.
In closing statements, Dietzel framed the choice as one between a county that "takes care of our neighbors" and one that follows a narrower fiscal approach; Dickinson emphasized repairing board culture and applying his decades of economic‑development experience to prepare the county for long‑term challenges.
The League moderator closed by thanking candidates and viewers, noting the forum will be rebroadcast on City Channel (Mediacom channel 8) and online, and urging voters to participate in the June primary and November general election. The forum included no formal motions or votes.
